Order Psocoptera

COMMON NAMES: BOOKLICE, BARKLICE OR PSOCIDS

The Psocoptera are tiny insects that have either four wings, two wings or none at all. They have chewing mouthparts and a gradual metamorphosis, the life stages being the egg, nymph, and adult. Most species occur outdoors on plants, or under bark, stones or dead leaves. Some of the wingless Psocoptera are called booklice and are found around old books, papers, and in damp, dark rooms. They feed on molds, fungi, pollen, insect fragments and similar materials. The species that occur indoors rarely cause much damage but are frequently a nuisance.

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Examples

Family: Liposcelididae

Liposcelis sp.

size: 1/25 (1mm)

Habitat: Common flour mill and grain pest

**most of the images included in these pages are from the 'Insects in Kansas' Book. They are freely available for student and noncommercial use (according to their copyright agreement with each photographer) at the PDIS image site, http://www.pdis.org/default.aspx

For additional information on Psocoptera, please check out the following websites: